Somewhere Close
by darkprincess888
Summary: When a bad day ends with a smile and a new one begins with one too! Karmanami/Karumana!
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello everyone! ionica01 gave these prompts for me to write on Tumblr and combing them it became a two shot fanfiction! Lo, this small piece of work is dedicated to you and your amazing stories with lots of love from me!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Assassination classroom and its characters do not belong to me!**_

 _ **Prompt: 1. "If my day gets any worse, I'm asking hell if they're having an exchange program."**_

 _ **Prompt: 2. "I am one of the few people in the world who can murder you and leave no forensic evidence behind."**_

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Chapter 1: When bad day ends with a Smile

 **Somewhere Close**

 **Chapter 1: When bad day ends with a Smile**

Manami yawns. She has been preparing reports and observations since morning. Her fingers felt stuck and her head ached. She pulled her glasses off her face and rubbed her eyes. Cleaning them carefully, she put them on again.

Three more reports to write.

The moment her fingers hovered over the keys of laptop again, her phone rang. The screen displayed Karma-kun in bold letters. Her fingers involuntarily grabbed the cell phone and swiped against the screen to accept it.

"Hello! Karma-kun?"

"Yo. Okuda-san." The weariness in his voice was visible even over the phone. She could even imagine him rubbing the bridge of his nose and temple in irritation.

"Yes, Karma-kun. Are you alright?"

A short laugh reaches her ears and then he says, "Never mind me. But are you free tonight?"

 _I need someone to talk._ Was left unsaid. But thankfully for him, she still heard it.

She looked at the files and folders strewn across her table.

Three more reports, right? She should to be able to finish them if she skips her breaks and works half hour extra.

"Yes I am."

"Great! I'll come to pick you up, kay? When should I come?" Maybe it's just her assumption but he sounds a little glad.

"Can you come at 6:45?" she finds her lips curling into a smile. His excitement is a little contagious.

"Okay! I'll be there!" A second later karma hangs up.

…

When her work is done, it's almost 6:50. She pulls her stuff up and races down the stairs, only to be met with the sight of him leaning against his car, blazer gone and sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His careful hairstyle had become slightly messier. He held a coffee in his hands and his golden eyes were focused on the road.

Knowing him, it was an act. To let the females on this side gushing over him, that he was not interested. Manami almost exits the lab when a hand falls over her shoulder. Her head swivels and she comes face to face with her senior – Hijikata-san.

"Okuda-san? Are you done for today?" the older woman smiles.

"Yes Mam."

"That's great to know! Normally, we'd have to drag you out of the lab to send you home." She laughs and Manami smiles awkwardly, shifting on her foot repeatedly, wanting to get out of here as soon as possible.

Maybe the woman notices her discomfort and gasps, "Oh my god! He's here! Isn't he?" then poking her head out from her side she sees Karma.

"Shoo! Girl. Go!" And a second later Manami finds herself out of the labs.

s when Karma notices her and his nonchalant expression transforms into a big grin and Manami finds herself returning it as well.

"I'm sorry! I expected to finish up a little earlier." Manami says as she hands her bag to him which he throws on the back seat carefully.

"No big deal! I'm just happy to see you here, honestly."

As Manami laughs whole heartedly at his response he looks comically offended, "Hey! I missed you, you know."

"Seven days, karma-kun. We just met a week ago!" she shakes her head in amusement at his antics.

"But I still missed you, even though you didn't." he pouts like a petulant child.

"Well, I never said that I didn't miss you." She tells him smiling softly.

"I know." He grins.

…

When they reach their favourite restaurant, it is packed full. The place was not actually huge or high class but the food was delicious and staff was welcoming. The environment was cosy and friendly. Manami sincerely loved it here.

They're led to their table which was thankfully empty by their normal server. Jin-kun was bright and brilliant child but with poor background and in need of money. To Karma, he reminded much of Isogai, who currently has been doing well. Both of them always made sure to leave a little extra sum to help him, even though it was little.

"So, the usual?" he asks with a big smile, one hand holding the notepad and other ready with a pen.

"Yes." They nod in response to his query.

And he bounds off to the kitchens for getting their orders prepared.

"So," she leans a bit forward to brush off some of his red locks out of his eyes out of instinct. His eyes were beautiful and she didn't like it when she couldn't see them. Though, he looked a little surprised at her actions and she suddenly gets flustered and pulls her hand back.

"I-I mean how was your day?"

"Bad." He replies in one word but Manami does not ask any more questions because she knows that he won't talk in public.

"What about yours?"

"It was good! But I'm just sort of nervous." She doesn't understand but somehow words flow out of her mouth when she's with him. She knows that she is a far cry from the socially awkward child she was once but with Karma – it was different.

"Nervous?" he looks at her with his brows raised and suddenly blinks, "Oh yeah! Tomorrow the first results of pre-clinic test of Rh slither blood would be coming up, right? You mentioned it earlier. Takebayashi's been dealing with it, right?"

"Yes, I'm just worried about what if it fails? All of our work would-"

"Okuda-san." He doesn't let her continue. The sensation of his warm and large hand over her own sends a tingle down her spine, "you put your day and nights in it. I know you've worked hard and thought of it from every possible angle. You're going to be fine and it passed the previous tests with flying colours. So, please don't worry."

She doesn't know but when karma says things like this – she cannot help but believe him. His reassurance always works magic to calm her nerves. So, she gives him a smile which he returns.

That's when their food arrives. The sight and delicious smell of food reminds them both of how much hungry they both were. Their stomach growls and they grin and start digging into their food.

Soon they're done with it and almost leave the restaurant when suddenly Jin-kun stumbles and falls, spilling all the curry about to be served over Karma's white dress shirt. Manami gasps. And Jin looks horrified as everyone looks on in apprehension.

"S-sorry!" the boy almost sobs.

A sudden sound of snicker reaches their ears as Manami sees a group of boys laughing at the situation. The boy sitting on the edge of seats pulls his leg inside the booth grinning at them, saying, "Oops, Sorry! Hahaha!"

That's when Manami realises the amount of killing intent that was oozing out of Karma! He helped Jin to his feet and sauntered over the table of those boys. Manami straightened herself, lest she should've to intervene to stop karma from killing people.

 _On the top it, he already had a bad day. Oh no!_

Although, she could see that Karma's potent blood lust was actually creeping those guys out. Then Karma tilted his head to look at the owner of the restaurant, "Oji-san, you know, there's a law that says denial of service is completely acceptable if a customer insults a good employee and crates trouble for some another valued customer."

"Is that so, Akabane-kun? Thank you for informing me. And please, you all may leave because we will not be serving you anymore." The old man states firmly. But the boys try to glare up at him which was responded by Karma's increased blood lust.

As they try to leave, the one who had tripped Jin falls flat on his face and Karma grins devilishly, "Oops. Sorry." The boy hastily jumps to his feet and they immediately run towards the exit followed by Manami and Karma who had waved off Jin's apology saying that it was not his fault.

Sometimes, Manami feels proud of Karma's development but never says anything. Pointing it out might upset him.

They enter his car when she suddenly screams, "Take off your shirt Karma-kun! The curry was scorching hot! You burned yourself!"

He hesitates for a second but obliges when Manami glares at him, "Now."

"Okuda-san." He teases, "Do you understand the implications of me being shirtless with you inside my car?"

"I don't care!" she tells him defiantly, her eyes never leaving the red spot of burned skin on his chest, feeling slightly guilty. Nonetheless, he picks up the blazer from the backseat and puts it on his shoulders, hiding the burnt area from her eyes. She speculates that he must have read her.

"We're going to my house." She declares, "And I'm going to patch you up."

Thankfully, for some reason he doesn't object.

…

"But seriously, I swear that if my day gets any worse, I'm asking hell if they're having an exchange program."

A giggle escapes her mouth as she applies a homemade cooling and healing jell on his chest. Only he would say things like this. It's premium to him alone.

"What happened?"

"Those old tweezers. What else? I swear they've lost their minds. They think they're too wise because they're old and I believe that old age has rotten off their brains. They reject every suggestion that the young new comers put to protect their damned overblown ego. They have been making me mad lately, especially that old bastard Nifuji."

"Hm, do you want me to threaten him for you?" Manami asks with a light smirk on her face and a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Oh?" he looks at her in interest, "Can you do that?"

She grins, "Of course I can. I'll say – 'Nifuji-san. If you annoy Karma-kun one more time, be prepared. I am one of the few people in the world who can murder you and leave no forensic evidence behind."

Karma laughs heartily, "I won't argue with that! So, Okuda-san, I'm counting on you to save me, okay?"

Manami nods, a light smile on her face, glad that she could help Karma, in her own little way. Because seeing him genuinely laugh is one of the most beautiful sight on earth for her and she will not deny the warmth that spreads through her chest essentially when she is the reason behind it.

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 _ **How was it? I hope you liked it! please review!**_

 _ **see you again!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**I completed the entire thing so here is the next chapter of 'Somewhere Close'. Hope you like it too!**_

 _ **Prompt: I just told you I liked you but now I'm shy and say "never mind, forget it" and why are you looking at me like that?**_

* * *

 **Somewhere Close**

 **Chapter 2: When a good day begins with a smile**

It was only after a while that she remembers that one of his t-shirts and shorts were left from the last time they had a sleepover. It was a fortunate day when all of them – Nagisa-kun, Kaede-chan, Yukiko-chan and Sugino-kun were all free. They had the best time of their lives that particular night. But Karma had forgotten and left his night clothes. Although, Manami finds it very weird that Karma forgot something. Because this is Karma-kun. He never forgets anything. But she never reminds him because a part of her mind says that he remembers. What she doesn't disclose that at the end of a hard day, she seeks comfort in them.

But the current situation demanded her to finally return his possessions. So she begrudgingly picks them from her closet and brings them to him downstairs.

Only to see him preparing two cups of coffee. Shirtless. Making coffee wasn't a big deal because it was not extremely new event for Karma to do this. They still spend a lot of time together and he was well acquainted with her apartment just like she was with his.

But she found her face burning scarlet.

Because the scene was too domestic to be between friends. No. best friends, but still.

Manami wonders if it was due to her inaptness in understanding social relation and feelings but, at times she had a hard time determining the line between friendship and romance. Because with Karma that lined blurred dramatically.

She takes a deep breath to calm her nerves.

"Karma-kun?"

"Hm?" he doesn't even look up from what he's doing.

"I have your clothes."

"Oh?" he eyes the clothes as he brings two coffee mugs and sets them on table, takes his clothes, thanks her by patting her head and heads towards the bathroom.

Coffee with cream and one sugar. Perfect. Just the way she likes it. Her lips naturally curve into a smile. It was sometimes unnerving that he remembers the smallest of the details about her. But she tries to convince herself that he is a naturally observant guy.

When he returns back, his hair was more mussed than previously. He takes a seat directly facing her and grabs the mug and takes a long sip. A satisfied sigh escapes his lips. They do not talk. She finds it soothing that whenever she's with Karma even the silence feels comfortable. None of them are excessive talkers and enthusiasts. But thankfully that never dampened their bond. They still find it easy to converse with one another and it makes her happy.

He gets off to rinse their cups when Manami remembers that now-curry stained shirt was one of his favourites. Wordlessly she stands up and goes to the bathroom to fetch his shirt. Curry stains are harsh and it might make his shirt unusable. But she might be able to remove the stain with her homemade stain remover.

She tucks the soiled shirt to her chest and rushes to the laundry room. Even though the scent of curry is strong, her nose can still trace the soft scent of his. Karma always smelled soft and sweet with a masculine tinge to it. Even his home smells like that. Manami notes that the scent that he and his home were laced with was a mystery. She had honestly never smelled something even remotely similar. He says that his parents regularly bring incense sticks from India. It might have to do something with it?

A slight blush paints her cheeks. She thinks that she should stop thinking about such unnecessary things.

She soaks his shirt in water and pulls out the detergent and stain remover. After two minutes of soaking, the loose bits of curry are gone colouring the water and leaving a large light brown blotch over the shirt. She pours the stain remover and rubs the clothes with her hands and sets it aside for a few seconds, drains the curry water fills it up again and adds some detergent in it. After soaking the shirt again in the detergent water, she moves on to sort out her own laundry. Time flies by and when she removes the shirt out of water the stain was gone and she couldn't help but grin.

She sets it to dry and runs off to Karma to tell him that he can take his shirt tomorrow morning only to find him asleep on her sofa. She stops dead in her tracks and observes him carefully. He was curled up in himself, breathing softly and evenly. His face which was usually set to display a mischievous and intimidating smirk softened considerably. He looked so vulnerable at the moment that Manami did not have the heart to wake him up. He looked like an exhausted kid after a hard day at school.

She knows that her sofa was not big enough to accommodate him. After all, he was over six feet tall now. Though luckily, her guest room was always prepared because it was not uncommon for her parents to visit her so she decides to wake him up and tell him to use that room.

As she kneels down to shake him, he softly sighs and Manami forgets gher objective. She finds herself leaning towards him, enamoured. And her fingers brush against his red hair.

"I love you." The words unconsciously tumble out from her mouth.

She jerks away violently when she finds two golden eyes stare down at her.

"K-Kar-Karma-kun?! You were a-awake?" she yells out with her entire face red.

"Hm?" He rubs his eyes and she notes that they were hazy with sleep and she thanks the heavens above. "You were saying something?" he asks, still sleepy.

"Nope! Never mind! Forget it! But please don't sleep here. I have a spare room, remember?" he nods and lifts himself up. He is so groggy that he almost stumbles but Manami's firm and small; hands support him. In response, he gives her a thankful smile that makes her heart skip a beat. Somehow, they reach upstairs and enter the room and Karma immediately falls face first into the bed and falls asleep. Manami sweatdrops.

 _He must have had a very hard day._

She smiles to herself. Knowing that Karma's line of work kept him busy all the time and he always gave it his all. No matter what. He was dedicated to whatever he believed she should be to.

Silently, she tucks him in and leaves the room.

…

Next morning when she wakes up, the smell of fresh breakfast greets her, only to find Karma in her kitchen again. This time he was not shirtless. He was dressed in his white shirt and pants, flipping pancakes. He looked crisp and showered, his hair slicked into his work style and his blazer resting upon the sofa ready to be worn.

Sensing her, he spoke up, "I just remembered in the morning, that I had a few necessary clothing articles in my car. So, I used your bathroom. Hope you don't mind. And breakfast is ready."

As he turned to face her, she felt a shiver run down her body. His golden eyes looked different than usual. They were sharply scrutinizing her but there was an infinite amount of warmth in them. Something else too but Manami could not actually determine.

She nods and runs off to begin her daily routine.

When they sit for the breakfast Manami notes that he has been eyeing her with the same gaze for the entire period of their breakfast. No matter how hard she tries to ignore, the feeling of those bright eyes following her every move never stalls. It makes her nervous.

Later when the breakfast is over and she is ready for the day he insists her that he will drop her off for the work and the intensity of his eyes is so dominating that she doesn't dare to object.

When they reach the large building of her lab, she steps out of the car only to be pulled back. A pair of warm lips brushing her cheeks and his uniquely endearing voice whispering a soft 'I love you too, Okuda-san' is left as a parting gesture.

By the time Manami regains her senses, Karma has already driven off with the biggest happy grin on his face.

* * *

 _ **So, the little thing ends! please don't forget to share your thoughts with me!**_

 _ **Hope you all liked it! Please do tell me your thoughts!**_


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